MODERN PROBLEMS
by ChocolateChipCookie31
Summary: This is a story based on the movie Modern Problems starring Chevy Chase. It's a great movie, and I really recommend it and hope you like my story. It's from the character, Darcy's, POV. Enjoy! :)
1. Moving Out

**"You're sleeping with him, aren't you?"**

 **"Of course not! Max, why don't you trust me? What have I ever done to make you think so little of me?"**

 **Max Fiedler and I have been together for over a year, and I'm crazy in love with him, but he is a very jealous person, and for some reason, doesn't trust me. I trust him with my whole life. He is an air traffic controller and I work at Saks Department Store. On occasion, I have lunch or dinner with salesmen. Max, for some reason, believes that I am cheating on him with these men. One in particular. His name is Barry, and he's just a friend. Barry knows I don't have those kinds of feelings for him, that my heart is with Max, and always has been. Even Max's ex-wife, Lorraine, who I happen to be good friends with, knows how much I love him. Max is still friends with Lorraine, and they ending of their marriage was amicable. They both realized that they weren't as in love as they thought. They had more of a brother-sister type of relationship.**

 **Lorraine was the one to introduce me to Max in the first place. Max and I have been fighting for weeks. It's like a day can't go by without an argument starting up. This one was really bad, however. In a fit of rage, Max picked up a Monopoly board and threw it across the room. We were playing it when he started questioning me about why I was so late getting home. I told him I had to have dinner with Barry to talk over some things, and I thought I told him. I didn't. I apologized, and I thought I told him. He then accused me of cheating and threw the Monopoly board. Max then said he was sleeping on the sofa.**

 **Tears in my eyes, I went to the bedroom and slammed the door shut. We didn't say anything the next morning as we got ready for work. Not even bye. Max left before I did. He always left a half an hour early before I did. Once he left, I made myself a cup of coffee, and wiped at my eyes. I sit down on the couch, and looked over at my cat who purred when I scratched her behind the ears.**

 **I loved Max, but I couldn't take this anymore. I couldn't be with somebody who didn't trust me. I am the last person in the world to break Max's heart, and for some reason, he doesn't believe me. Making my decision, I dump my coffee in the kitchen sink, and decide to pack. My old apartment hasn't been rented to anyone else yet, and I was allowed to come back if I wanted to. Some of my furniture was still there. It was only a few blocks from this building.**

 **I know Max is going to be hurt when he gets home, and I'm sorry about that, but I just can't take living like this anymore.**

 **My phone won't be hooked back up for a while, so I'll call him and leave a message while I'm at work.**

 **Max Fiedler is the love of my life, and I wish I knew what I did to get him to not trust me.**

 **TBC**

 **NOTE: I know there's no Modern Problem fics up, but I hope there will be some in the future. Happy reading! :)**


	2. Saying Goodbye

All day at work, all I could think about was Max. I felt guilty for leaving without saying a proper goodbye. Tonight, when I get off work, I'm going to go to his apartment and talk to him. He's probably calmed down by now. He's not a violent man or anything like that, he's just crazy jealous. Other than that, he's as gentle as a lamb. Luckily, my friend, Carol, noticed that my mind was elsewhere, so she said she would cover the rest of my shift. I thanked her, and left, taking a cab over to Max's place. Taking a deep breath, I mustered up my courage, and knocked on the door a few times. No answer.

"Max? Are you home?"

No answer. I still had a key so I let myself in. The apartment was cleaned up a little. I sit down on the sofa, and wait for him. He probably stopped off to eat someplace. Normally, when Max and I had a fight, we would make up by going out to a nice restaurant, or ordering in Chinese take-out or something. I only had to wait a few minutes when the door opened and Max walked in. By the look on his face, I could tell he was surprised to see me. Getting up, I walk over towards him, slowly, taking a deep breath. I need to get this off my chest.

"I came to see you because I felt really guilty about leaving without saying goodbye. I'm sorry it didn't work out between us."

I wait for him to say something, but he doesn't, so I continue.

"Now, I want you to know that, even after all we've been through... I love you."

It was true. More true than anything I've ever said. Max is a great guy, he really is, he just doesn't know it. Why he thought so little of himself was a big mystery. He walks over to a plant sitting on a table, and picks off one of the leaves.

"Look... I realize we haven't been communicating a lot lately, and... I think we should."

This I agree with. "I think so, too."

"Good. Do you want me to start?"

I smile in relief. Maybe we can work things out. "Yeah, you start."

"Okay, I will. Good. Okay."

I wait patiently for him to get whatever it is he has to say off his chest.

"You want me to start? I mean, you're sure, you want... you want me to start?"

I can see where this is going. He's about to start another argument. I wasn't in the mood.

"Never mind. Good night, Max."

I open the door to leave. I hear him call out my name, but I don't respond. I wasn't going to play this game anymore.


	3. The Press Party

I am sitting here in my apartment, alone, and miserable. I miss Max. I miss him so much it hurts. I know I've only been gone a day or two, but I really love him. I want to work things out with him, for he is a wonderful human being, but he has a lot of trust issues. I contemplate going over to talk to him, when there's a knock on my door. Hopefully, it's Max. I go over to the door and say, "Who is it?"

"It's Barry."

I sigh. It's not that I'm not glad to see Barry, I was just hoping it was Max. I unlock the door to let him in. Whenever Max and I are having trouble, he's always there to listen to what I have to say. He's like a brother.

"Hello, Barry. Come on in."

"What's the matter? Have you been crying?"

I wipe at my eyes. "A little."

"Hey, I have an idea. I'm getting ready to go to a press party. They're having it for Mark Winslow. You know how much I admire him. Why don't you come with me?"

I shake my head.

"No, thank you, Barry. I just want to stay in."

"Come on. It'll do you good to get out of the apartment for a while. It'll take your mind off Max, anyway."

He was right, I knew he was.

"Okay, I'll go. Just give me a few minutes to get ready."

"No rush."

I look in my closet for a nice outfit to wear. I go into the bathroom to put it on, and then do my hair and make-up. It doesn't take me longer than fifteen minutes. The party is at a bar in a bad neighborhood. I'm not one who usually likes going to bars. I'm the type to just go out to dinner or stay in and order take-out and maybe watch TV. Max is the same way. Even now I can't get him off my mind.

Barry holds my hand as we walk through all of the people. Imagine my shock when we run into Max. Wouldn't you know he'd be here, too. He asks me what I'm doing there, but he doesn't ask it like he's upset or anything. I tell him the truth. Max and Barry talk for a few minutes, but I blank it out, as I can't stop staring at Max. I'm worried about him. I know he wants to talk and is upset. He's good at hiding it, though. As we go up the stairs to meet Mr. Winslow, Max tells me he's at the bar with Lorraine. That makes me feel a little bit better.

Me and Barry go to get a drink, and I tell Max we'll talk later. He seems fine with that. Barry orders a drink, but I'm not in the mood. We end up meeting Mr. Winslow when he comes up to the bar. Right off the bat, I didn't like him. I found him to be a condescending jerk. Especially about my relationship with Max. Wouldn't you know Barry would tell him, and we only just met him. Once Mr. Winslow leaves, Barry turns to me and asks, "What'd you think?"

I shake my head. "I don't like him. I find him to be arrogant and rude."

Barry looks like I just slapped him. I didn't mean to hurt Barry's feelings, but I had to be honest.

"I'm sorry, Barry. Listen, can we leave?"

"Sure. Oh, hey, listen, I'll pick you up tomorrow after work, we need to discuss some things."

"Okay. What time?"

"What time do you get off work?"

"Early. Around 4:30."

"Oh. Well, how about I pick you up at your place, say six? Give you time to get ready?"

"That's fine."

With that, we leave the bar and head home.


	4. Dinner and a Nosebleed

I got myself fixed up really nice because the restaurant Barry was taking me to was a really nice, Italian restaurant. I told him over and over again that we don't need to go to fancy places, but he always insists. The only other time I have been to this restaurant was once with Max. Wouldn't you know as soon as we walked in the door, we found Max at a table. We walked up to him. This was going to be uncomfortable.

"Hey, Max. You followin' us, around," Barry asked in a joking manner.

"Oh, hi," Max replied, caught off guard.

"Not again," I say with a sigh.

"What brings you here, Max?" Asks Barry.

"Mostly habit, I guess. We used to eat here a lot."

I smile at Max. "One time."

"You two must know each other then, huh?" Barry laughs and then goes to get us a table.

"Darcy, I've got to talk to you right away," Max says, seriously.

"Why? Because I'm with Barry?"

"No, that's not it."

Before anything else can be said, Barry takes me to our table. The waiter hands us our menus. I'm not even hungry now. I tell Barry I don't know what to do. I'm worried about Max, and I don't want him to be upset. I know he wanted to talk.

"Should I go check on him?"

I shrug. It might help put my mind at ease. I sit and wait for Barry to come back. I don't even look over at them. I just want to go home and go to sleep. Max is the only thing that's on my mind, lately.

Barry comes back and tells me that Max is fine. Good. I excuse myself to go to the ladies' room. Once I get back, however, it's strange. Our menus are both gone, and so is Barry.

"Hi."

I look over to see Max coming towards me.

"I just thought you'd like to know, Barry had to leave. He had a nosebleed."

"What? Is he all right?"

"I think so. He said he felt fine. He's with a doctor."

"A doctor?"

"Yeah, that's what I thought. Why would a grown man with a simple nosebleed need a doctor? Barry squeamish?"

"No," I say, shrugging. The nosebleed must of been pretty bad for him to need a doctor.

"Look, let me see you home."

I sigh. "Max, I'm not up to you tonight."

"No, I just wanted... let me get you a cab."

I couldn't say no to him. He seemed okay. I agreed. He asked me if I wanted something to eat first, and I told him I would just eat what I had at home.

As we were walking down the sidewalk, Max decided to ask me to move back in. I wanted to, I really did, but I just couldn't.

"No!" I know I sounded whiny, but I couldn't help it.

"Why? Why not?"

"Because I don't believe you'll ever change."

"I will change. I already have."

"In two days? Bologna, Max. Taxi!"

The taxi didn't see me and continued driving. Max decided to continue the conversation.

"You have to come back. Look, I promise I won't call you. I won't call you at work. You can go out with those guys on those business dates. You can even bring them home for dinner."

"Max, you really don't take this seriously, do you?"

"Oh, God! No, I do!"

There was a pause. Max then tried a different tactic.

"Okay, okay, look. If you won't move back in, could you at least come over for a few hours every day and sit with me?"

I can't help it. I start to laugh. Even Max smiles a little.

"Let's go out tomorrow night."

"No."

"No trouble. Just for fun."

"Okay. No, maybe. I'll- I'll have to check and see if I have any commitments."

"Commitments? I'm more important than any commitments."

Oh, my God. "See, Max? Cut it out!"

"Okay. Okay, you're right. I'm sorry. I can't help it. It's just that things have been going strange for me lately."

"What do you mean?"

We walk over to a parked taxi.

"I, uh- I-I don't want to bring that up now. You've had enough of me tonight."

"All right, well, I'll call you tomorrow, then."

"Okay, good. Good."

"Okay."

We both said good night, and then kissed. Maybe we would be able to work things out after all.

"I'll see you tomorrow," he says.

"I'll call you tomorrow."

"Right."

Max opens the door to the cab for me. I get in and head home, feeling better than I have in a while.

TBC


	5. The Ballet

NOTE: To Guest Reviewer: The exciting stuff will be coming up shortly! Thanks for the reviews, and you too, Gump :)

As soon as I got home, I immediately went straight to the phone to call Barry and see how he was doing. He answered on the third ring.

"Hello?"

"Barry? It's Darcy. Are you all right?"

"Yes, I feel just fine. It was really strange. One minute I'm looking at the menu, the next minute, I've got a nosebleed. It just kept getting worse and worse. I felt fine, though. Just embarrassed. As soon as I left the restaurant, it stopped, but I went to the emergency room, anyway. Nothing was wrong. They cleaned me up and that was it. I called the restaurant but they said you left."

"Yes. Are you sure you're all right?"

"Never better. Listen, don't forget about tomorrow night."

"Tomorrow night?"

"Yes, my ballet show. You promised me two weeks ago you'd come as my date.

 _Oh, no._ I had completely forgotten about that! Max is going to kill me!

"Are you there, Darcy?"

"Oh, yes. I'm sorry, I forgot. I..."

"I need you there as my date."

 _But Max needs me, too!_ I wanted to go with Max, but I already promised Barry.

"I'll be there."

"Great! The show is at 8:30. I'll pick you up at eight. Sound good?"

"Fine."

We said good night, and I went to bed, a bundle of nerves about how I was going to break this to Max.

THE NEXT DAY

I promised Max that I would call him today. I'll call him and explain everything when I get off work. He was trying to change, so hopefully, he understands. As I'm working, the phone rings. I answer it.

"Hello, Darcy Carson."

"I've been waiting on your call all day. What's going on?"

Oh, no. Well, it's now or never. "I was gonna call you when I got off work."

"Well, I just got off. I'll pick you up right away and we can go eat."

Oh, boy.

"Max, you're going to kill me. Barry's ballet opens tonight."

I went on to explain to Max about who was dancing and that I already promised Barry I would go. Max, as expected, got upset, and again, accused me of being involved with him.

"Max, you know he's an old friend, and I've needed his company these last few days. Tonight he needs me."

"You liar. You knew last night you were going out with him, didn't you?"

"I swear I didn't remember, and I'm at work, and I've gotta get off the phone!"

"You never did love me, did you, Darcy?"

I wasn't about to have this same argument again.

"Max, last night was very promising. Please don't blow it."

I hung up. Once I was done, my friend, Carol, walked up to me.

"Is everything all right?"

"Oh, yes, just fine. Thank you, Carol."

LATER THAT NIGHT

At the ballet, I was surprised to see Lorraine there. She was with Max's best friend, Brian Stills, who was in a wheelchair. He was a very nice guy, and Lorraine seemed really happy with him. I asked how Max felt about their new relationship and he was happy for them. Of course, Mark Winslow was there as well with two dates. We talked for a bit and then went in to watch the show.

It started off really good, but then got weird. The dancer kept having a lot of embarrassing mishaps. A couple of times I had to cover my face from trying not to laugh. I know Barry's show was ruined, and I'm sorry about that, but it was still amusing. Once that was over, I told Barry I was going to the ladies' room, and I would be out in a minute.

Lorraine was in there as well.

"How crazy was that," she asked me.

"I know, it was."

"Especially the end, when... well, you know. Anyway, how are things going between you and Max?"

I sighed. "Well, last night he told me he had changed. Wouldn't you know as soon as I say I've already made plans with Barry, he accuses me of not loving him."

Lorraine gave me a sympathetic look.

"Look, you two love each other, there's no doubt about that. You know as well as I do that Max is a great guy."

"Of course he is, I just wish he didn't have trust issues."

"Hey! Brian has this great house on the beach. I'm going to be spending the weekend there with him. So is Mark Winslow. Why don't you and Max join us?"

"Oh... I don't know."

"Look, it will give you two a chance to talk and clear your heads. What do you say?"

I nod my head.

"All right. I'll talk to Max about it later."

"Good girl."


End file.
